News June 20, 2024
Potatoes Are the Perfect Vegetable—but You’re Eating Them Wrong
In the late 1990s, the United States reached a peak of potato consumption, with Americans devouring an astonishing 64 pounds per year. The surplus was so great that the government had to pay farmers to take them off their hands. This frenzy even extended to official White House dinners, where the Clintons would serve up potatoes in various forms to visiting dignitaries. However, as Chris Voigt’s career as a potato industry executive took off, the American appetite for spuds began to wane. Today, the average American eats 30% fewer potatoes than during their heyday, with consumption of fresh potatoes plummeting even further. The rise of frozen potatoes, particularly french fries, has become the norm. This shift has sparked a battle over the future of food in America, with some advocating for a reclassification of potatoes as a vegetable. Despite this, the humble spud remains a nutrient-dense powerhouse, rich in vitamins and minerals.
Neo-Nazis Are All-In on AI
Extremists across the US have harnessed artificial intelligence tools to spread hate speech with unprecedented speed and efficiency, according to a new report from the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI). AI-generated content has become a staple of extremist output, with groups developing their own models and experimenting with novel ways to leverage the technology. This includes producing blueprints for 3D weapons and recipes for making bombs. The Domestic Terrorism Threat Monitor at MEMRI has tracked the widespread adoption of AI video tools, with extremists using these platforms to produce high-quality video content. This technology has already been used to create disturbing videos featuring prominent figures in compromising situations. Experts warn that there is currently no available solution to prevent the spread of terrorist content generated by generative AI tools.
Europe Scrambles for Relevance in the Age of AI
When Finns converse with AI assistants like ChatGPT, they often sense a subtle disconnection. The Finnish approach to dialogue is direct and blunt, whereas chatbots tend to be overly courteous. Moreover, most leading chatbots and language models are developed in the US and trained on predominantly American data, imbuing them with an inherently American tone. This cultural flattening could have significant consequences as large language models power digital services and products across Europe. The dominance of American models raises concerns about economic value flowing to private companies outside the continent, prompting discussions around “AI sovereignty” - ensuring that the core infrastructure behind AI isn’t controlled by foreign entities. European nations are investing heavily in supercomputers and AI research to catch up with the US and China, but they lag behind in capital and computing power, and lack homegrown tech giants like Microsoft, Google, and Meta.
YouTube cracking down on discounts obtained via VPN workaround, users report
Hey YouTube Premium subscribers! If you used a VPN to snag a cheaper subscription rate, your account may soon be getting canceled - if it hasn’t already. Reports are flooding in of users having their subscriptions terminated after signing up for Premium via a money-saving workaround meant for users living in specific countries with lower prices. It seems that YouTube is cracking down on this workaround and canceling subscriptions left and right. The common thread among these cancellations: users signed up via a VPN, which virtually placed their accounts in countries where prices are lower.
Walmart+ Week isn’t the sale for standout headphone deals
We weren’t exactly beaming with excitement when we saw the underwhelming deals on headphones during Walmart+ Week. The sale, which kicked off June 17, was supposed to bring summer savings, but so far, it’s been a letdown. Instead of impressive discounts on headphones, we’ve seen minimal deals on random earbud brands and robot vacuums. As of day four, only one earbud deal remains from Baseus, and even that is out of stock in some areas. To make matters worse, the deals are exclusive to paying Walmart+ members, who will need to shell out $12.95 per month or $98 for an annual subscription just to access them. For now, we recommend waiting for Prime Day for better deals on headphones.